ISDEFE

Managing Systems Acquisition and Maintenance encompasses the various processes associated with life cycles: definition, procurement, service support, modernization, and retirement.

System life cycles features three distinct phases: planning, acquisition and operation, and service support. The first phase begins with identification, planning and budgeting. This includes performing viability studies (technical-economic, deadlines, industrial), market studies (materials, resources, subcontracting…), systems cost estimating, modelling alternative selections based on life cycle costs and analysis, evaluation, and the negotiation of budgets for procurement and maintenance.

The second phase is the actual acquisition and includes contracting, administration and receipt, and the trials needed to accept delivery. Here, the support given by Isdefe includes all activities related to the preparation of contracts, including the definition of contractual strategy, the selection of contract type (PBL, PPP, etc.), the technical/economic evaluation of the bids, and negotiations support. The administration of acquisitions is handled by setting up a programme office, which monitors all activities by contractors in the performance of the procurement programmes. Applying a specific methodology, programmes are administered evaluating Cost and Deadlines, risk analyses, requisite management, change management, requests for postponements, and participating in material delivery.

Once the system is in place, the phase known as Maintenance begins. This encompasses all the logistical activities necessary to maintain and repair the systems, guaranteeing the system’s proper operation, maintenance, and the upgrading of capabilities throughout its life cycle.

Within this maintenance phase, Isdefe has vast experience in the administration of maintenance contracts, the management of financial budgets, and in defining policies to outsource maintenance. For service support, we analyze capacities and plan workshop workloads (workforce, equipment, auxiliary tools, etc…), and analyze the flow of maintenance applying Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma techniques. In addition, we analyze and implement predictive maintenance, plan, manage and administer Preventive Maintenance, manage corrective maintenance, and handle warranties.

The support to provision and manage the replacements involved in maintenance includes activities such as needs assessment, acquisition, receipt, storage and distribution.

A part of maintenance is the engineering support through the systems’ life cycle: evaluation, control and the tracking of modifications and updating proposed by the manufacturer, configuration control, obsolescence management, and plans for system down time, and the management and control of documentation (technical manuals, manufacturer’s notices, etc…).